Double shortlist for Somerset in Health Service Journal awards

The 2025 Health Service Journal (HSJ) Award shortlists have been announced today – and here in Somerset, we’ve got double the celebrations

Our first shortlist is our post-menopausal bleeding service, which has been nominated in the Acute Sector Innovation of the Year category, for the implementation of self-referrals. Before the service was introduced, patients had to wait around 63 days to be seen by a hospital specialist, with a possible wait of up to 48 days for a cancer diagnosis. Now, two years on, the wait to see a specialist has reduced to just six days, and patients are getting a cancer diagnosis within 11 days of a referral.

We were also delighted to see that Somerset Open Mental Health has been shortlisted in the Mental Health Innovation of the Year category. Somerset was the first healthcare system in England to enter a formal partnership and alliance with voluntary, charitable and third sector organisations to provide community mental healthcare services to patients across the county. Its development has largely helped to stabilise waiting times for NHS mental health services within Somerset, able to meet the expected increase in patients with a whole new range of support. The alliance is one we are particularly proud of, working together with our partners across the county to support people to live a full life.

A huge congratulations to all our colleagues, and our partners, on these shortlists – they are wholeheartedly deserved, and we can’t wait to find out in November whether either will be taking home the trophy.